Never far from home
Derrelle Elijah x Fred Perry

Fred Perry’s collaboration with artist Derrelle Elijah invites us to rekindle the importance of family heritage and community. For their collaboration, Derrelle Elijah transports us into his collage of Birmingham, combining reinterpreted family archives and contemporary imagery of his hometown and community.

The collaboration features elements from a forthcoming body of work ‘Never far from home’, the work paying homage to family nostalgia and hometown artefacts, through mixed media paintings and sculptures. Celebrating how our untold stories interrelate, creating a visual Venn diagram of these shared memories. The limited-edition Fred Perry Shirt is available was released in November 2024.

The polo shirt features mixed media collage paintings turned into a digital all-over print, displaying reinterpreted images from Derrelle’s family Album. A poem, ‘Ode to Brum’, along with his Mom’s scrapbook; signature and complimentary phrases to his beloved hometown, Birmingham, are embroidered across the polo in contrast black thread. This shirt celebrates rekindling family heritage and community, whilst examining art as ephemera and visa versa.

I began making collage paintings to reimagine the stories my nan and grandad told me during their passing. I extracted moments from my family album, and reinterpreted them into new settings. The images don’t follow any order in time, instead focusing on the nuances that allow them to interrelate. The campaign video highlights interrelations within my community that resonated with my family’s stories, as a source point. These captured candid moments are turned into sculptural cut-outs. Celebrating their untold stories, whilst visualising how they interrelate through sculptural cut-outs. Several voices read the ‘Ode to Brum’ poem, as extracts from their stories, incidentals of Birmingham and their cut-outs are stitched together. Moments from the binder that inspired the paintings, also work alongside this. As a lovers rock riddim, sonically glues these visual elements together. Laying a backdrop for these moments and memories, just as they were to my childhood.

‘ My work examines the grey areas of information, normally missed in our constantly busy lives. For this Fred Perry Shirt design, I reminded myself that I’m never far from home, or my loved ones, as I played through the memories of my family archive whilst dealing with grief. This challenging time gave me the opportunity to come back to my community. As I listened to other untold stories which resonated and interrelated with my own, I wanted to celebrate and connect these stories through my campaign. I’d like people to see their own families within mine and my communities. Remembering that no matter where you are, their legacies are always with us as we stride to build our own. A true Venn diagram of cultures has adopted Fred Perry over the years. I wanted to add to this legacy, paying homage to what came before, documenting the overlooked and underrepresented. ‘


- Derrelle Elijah

WORKS:
[1] Never Far from home short film, [2] Fred Perry Shirt Folded, [3]Fred Perry Shirt Front, [4]Fred Perry Shirt Back, [5] Love conquers everyting edition, [6] Kaz’91 edition, [7]Ode to Brum edition,
[8] Sculptural cut-outs, [9] Never far from home collages
,

Folded white shirt with artistic digital print, embroidery, and branding, featuring a collar, from Fred Perry x Derrelle Elijah collection.
A short-sleeved, collared shirt with an all-over digital print of vintage photos of people. The shirt has embroidered poetry and branding, created through a collaboration between Fred Perry and Derrelle Elijah.
A short-sleeve button-up shirt with a digital print featuring a collage of images, text, and abstract designs in muted colors, along with embroidered poetry. The shirt is called 'Never far from home' by Fred Perry, collaboration with Derrelle Elijah.
A collage of watercolored photographs of people interacting and posing, with the title 'Love conquers everything' and details about solvent transfer and watercolor on paper, measuring 21 x 29.7 cm.
A digitally altered image showing a young man with blond hair in the top half, wearing a shirt and tie, and two individuals in business attire in the bottom half, with a yellow and gray color palette.
Abstract, blurry image with a mix of yellow, black, white, and gray colors.
Two men standing together in an indoor space, with one man wearing glasses and both dressed in dark suits, behind a table with a laptop. The background has potted plants and a window with trees outside.
A man with glasses, beard, and a blue and white shirt standing outdoors, with a child in front of him, and a woman on his right holding a fork, in a setting with trees and sunlight.
A watercolor art piece titled 'Kaz'91' created with solvent transfer on paper, measuring 21 x 29.7 cm. It depicts multiple scenes including a person with a yellow vehicle, a person holding a camera, a smiling woman, a person on a motorbike, and a per
A person sitting on a bench in a parking lot with several cars parked nearby, and a building in the background.
Person with short hair wearing a gray shirt, sitting at a desk with a laptop and book, looking at the camera.
A city street scene with two people, one sitting on a bench with a phone, and another standing nearby. In the background, there is a large truck and buildings.
A person standing in a room next to a bookcase with various items, and another person with a blurred face at the bottom of the image.
Typewritten poem or letter titled 'Ode to Brum' on ultrasensitive ink and typewriter, 64 by 48 cm.
Typewritten poem or message on grid paper with lines of text about jugglers, market huddles, stories, and city life.
An indoor scene with large windows and white walls, featuring a cutout of a man standing behind a cardboard display of various vegetables and fruits, such as apples, broccoli, and lettuce, with industrial ceiling elements in the background.
An art piece titled 'HATMAN', made of corrugated cardboard, depicts a figure wearing a hat and holding binoculars, placed in an industrial-style room with large windows.
A man with a beard and cap sitting on a bench inside an empty industrial-style room with large windows and white walls.
A man sitting on a uniquely shaped chair in a spacious room with large windows and white blinds.
Cutout of a woman standing in an empty industrial space with large windows, wearing glasses, a floral patterned shirt, and black pants.
Collage of photos taken at a market with a man shopping for vegetables. The collage includes images of the man in front of produce stalls, people shopping, and the market's exterior. Overlaid text reads 'DERRELLE ELIJAH.' The bottom caption credits a
A collage of two photographs, with the upper photo showing a market scene near the Furla building in London, and the lower photo featuring a man standing behind a fruit stand inside an industrial-style building. Text overlay includes the names Fred P
Collage of various scenes including an outdoor park with sculptures, a man standing outside a shop, a hair salon storefront, a building, and an interior space with a desk. Overlay text reads "Derrelle Elijah" and "Unisex Hair Salon."
Split collage of two images with text overlay: top image shows a man sitting on a chair inside an empty, industrial-style room with large windows; bottom image shows an urban building covered in graffiti with the text 'DERRELLE ELIJAH' across the sce
Collage of photos featuring two young women wearing matching patterned clothing, standing outdoors, including close-ups and full-body shots, with a small image of a brick building and a street scene. The collage has the text 'DERRELLE ELJAH' and a la
A collage featuring a woman in an art studio with large windows, wearing a patterned shirt. The second part shows a close-up of her arm and hand resting on her lap, with her name 'Derrelle Elijah' overlaid. Text at the bottom credits the collaboratio
Cover image of a collage featuring a landscape with a sunset or sunrise and a man sitting in an indoor space with large windows, with text displaying "DERRRELLE ELIJAH" and credits at the bottom.
A collage featuring photos of a man holding framed vintage portraits of a woman, wearing a colorful shirt, with additional photos of him sitting on a bench and standing outdoors. The collage is titled "DERRELL ELIJAH" and includes credits to the arti
Poster with two images: top image shows a man wearing a black hat and patterned shirt in shop with hats, bottom image shows a person with a cutout of the same man in an empty room with large windows, text overlay "DERRRELLE ELIJAH," and caption below